Do titles matter for Boost?
HUGE YES! Sometimes, even if a nomination gets selected for Boost, it doesn't perform well after it's been Boosted. Sometimes it just feels like it comes down to the title of the story.
Good titles, subtitles, and cover images establish relevancy to Medium readers. Articles get Boosted to expand work beyond your current followers. When an article appears on the Medium.com home page, readers will likely lack any context about your publication's editorial voice, and/or background of the writer.
What's going to make your story appeal enough for a reader to click through? Here are some title tips:
- Give the reader context for why they should click through to read the article. For example, take a look at the LA Times "Movies" page and note how movie reviews aren't simply titled "Review of 'Movie Title'." Instead, they're titled in an appealing way that makes you interested to read the review.
- Avoid hyperbole. While titles should be appealing, readers are very weary—and wary—of clickbait. Even if your article delivers what it promises, an overly hyperbolic title hurts your perceived credibility and readers won't click through at all.
- At the same time, avoid overly generic or cliché-laden titles. Generic titles mean generic, uninteresting content. (Examples of generic titles: "Nine Ways to Greater Happiness", "An Argument Between Father and Son", "Reflections on a Short Walk")
Do topic tags matter for Boost?
A story’s topics do not influence whether a nomination is approved for Boost, but obscure or missing topic tags can impact how a story performs if it is Boosted. The best practice is for a Boosted story to have at least one of our Explore page topics represented. This is especially important if the story author is new to Medium or has very few followers. If you're a publication editor, we suggest coaching your authors to ensure that their posts are well-tagged.
Again, topics do not affect whether a nomination is selected for Boost, but they can impact how well a Boosted story performs.